James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

What I am trying to say is that as things stand, and as clearly demonstrated by the X case, it is open to a doctor to perform a termination if she or he believes, in good faith, that it is the only treatment that will avert the threat to the life of the mother. That can happen now. We do not know if it is happening, how often it has happened or where it is happening. There is no onus on people to report it and there is no mechanism to monitor it. This Bill does all those things.

Deputy Naughten asked about a patient who might be suicidal because of pregnancy but who has an underlying condition. This is where the psychiatrist must use his or her clinical judgment and acumen to determine that the cause of the suicidal ideation and the risk to the woman's life is one primarily brought about by the pregnancy and not due to any other circumstance.

It might help a number of members if I state what Dr. Anthony McCarthy, who is the president of the Irish College of Psychiatrists, said. He said there is no treatment for suicide and that the only course of action is to remove the risk and remove the underlying causes. That is what the psychiatrist must do in clinical practice, namely, determine the underlying cause of the suicidal ideation presenting this risk. That is what this Bill allows for. If in the very rare circumstance it is the adjudication and the clinical judgment of the psychiatrist that the risk is indeed the continuation of the pregnancy, as opposed to any other underlying cause, then he or she must treat. Dr. Rhona O'Mahony said she cannot be satisfied as she is not a psychiatrist, although she is an obstetrician, that this situation will not arise and, therefore, she feels it must be provided for by law. As we know, it is provided for by law through the Supreme Court in the X case.